IOC Inspects 2015 Site; German Sports Hall of Fame; 2012 Qualification Update

IOC Pleased with Session Inspection

The 2015 IOC Session Coordination Commission visit to Kuala Lumpur went satisfactorily.

"Overall the Commission was satisfied with the proposals submitted," said a post on the Olympic Council of Asia website about the May 8-9 visit.

Delegates inspected the proposed venues – the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre and Mandarin Oriental.

Additionally, the commission sought "assurances from the government on the issuance of visas to all participants and clarifications and details on security and the budget."

Now the IOC must confirm the dates of the Session. The Olympic Council of Malaysia proposed July 25 to 31.

Tops on the Session agenda – electing a host of the 2022 Winter Olympics.

German Sports Hall of Fame Inductees

Gretel Bergmann, Hans Lenk, Wolfgang Henrich,LötzschMisersky and Antje Harvey are the newest inductees into the German Sports Hall of Fame.

The official ceremony will take place on May 25.

Harvey is the most decorated, with four medals including a gold in Albertville in biathlon. Lenk won a gold in rowing at the 1960 Olympics.

Bergmann and Lötzsch, however, are notable for what could have been.

Bergmannn tied the German record in the high jump just prior to the 1936 Olympics, but was removed from the team because she was Jewish.

Lötzsch was a top cyclist but refused to support the East German political structure and was barred from competing. When he won the East German cycling championship, other riders were forbidden to stand on the podium with him.

Misersky refused to allow his cross-country skiers to be injected with performance-enhancing drugs, at a time when doping was rampant in East German sports. His daughter, Antje, was one of the of the athletes he refused to dope, and she too was forced to retire early, hence both are being inducted into the Hall. Antje resumed competition after German reunification.

Japanese "Hopes" Rest Upon Tokyo 2020

Tokyo 2020 says its SportAccord delegation will carry "the hopes of the Japanese public" next week.

Senior bid leaders including president Tsunekazu Takeda, CEO Masato Mizuno, Yasuhiro Nakamori and communications director Tokuaki Suzuki will arrive Saturday in Quebec City ahead of next Wednesday’s announcement of the IOC shortlist.

"We are very hopeful of earning the honor to be named a candidate city," said Mizuno, also a vice president of the Japanese Olympic Committee.

"We will be representing the widespread support and hopes of the Japanese public and their tireless passion for sport. Placing the Olympic and Paralympic Games in the very heart of Tokyo will inspire a huge celebration of the Olympic Movement among young people in Japan, where friendship, excellence and respect are an honored way of life."

Baku, Doha, Istanbul and Madrid are the other bidders in contention for the coveted IOC shortlist.

First Female Olympian for Brunei?

Brunei will send at least two athletes to London 2012, according to its NOC, and one of them might be a woman.

Anderson Lim Chee Wei, a swimmer, and Maziah Mahusin, a hurdler, are the likeliest candidates to represent the southeast Asian sultanate due to universality places in aquatics and athletics for NOCs with no qualified athletes, reports The Brunei Times.

Mahusin, 19, would become Brunei’s first female Olympian should she compete at the Games.

USVI Sprinter Books London Berths

LaVerne Jones-Ferrette is the latest athlete to qualify from the U.S. Virgin Islands.

With her 200m time of 22.93 seconds at a Saturday meet in Puerto Rico, she doubles her Olympic program by meeting theIAAF’s "A" qualifying standard for London, a feat she already accomplished at the 100m distance.

Jones-Ferrette joins fellow sprinters Allison Peter (100m and 200m) and Tabarie Henry (400m) as well as triple jumper Muhammad Halim, freestyle swimmer Branden Whitehurst and laser sailor Cy Thompson on the USVI delegation.

Media Watch

Simon Clegg, former secretary general of the British Olympic Association, will have a much lower profile role at the 2012 Olympics. Namely "official attaché" for Guam at the Games.

The 2016 Olympics and 2014 FIFA World Cup are two of the draws for Portuguese moving to Brazil.

Written by Ed Hula III.

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